Baton Rouge Dentist

Can a Bleaching Kit Cause Pain?

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Hi,

My teeth are in generally good condition, and I have some old bonding on a front tooth to cover a chip. I’ve been using an at-home bleaching kit for the past few weeks, and I’ve been liking the results so far. However, the last time I used it, I felt a sharp pain on my front tooth for several seconds. Is this pain from the bonding, or from the bleaching kit? Or is it both?

Thank you,

Minerva, from Hazard, Nebraska.

 

Hi Minerva,

Thank you for your message. While you’ve had good results so far with the whitening kit, it’s important to use them at the direction of a dentist. Dentists can send you home with custom bleaching trays, which are stronger than over-the-counter kits. Under their supervision, they can monitor you for any pain or sensitivities. Let your dentist know about the pain you’re feeling, and they can coat it with something to eliminate the source of the sensitivity at your next appointment. However, you should stop bleaching for the time being until you can get the pain under control.

This type of pain you’re feeling is common, caused by placing bleaching gel on a sensitive part of the tooth. Since the tooth has been repaired after an injury, that could be why. Some of the bonding agent may have come off prior to the whitening.

Bleaching gel is not known to weaken bonding on teeth. If it did, your entire piece of bonding over the tooth would have fallen off too, and you’d be feeling a different type of pain.

This blog is brought to you Baton Rouge tooth whitening provider, Dr. Ryan P. Perry. Dr. Perry offers in-office and at-home tooth whitening through the Core system.

What should I do if I have a small budget and a chipped tooth?

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Recently, I fell down some stairs, smashed my face and chipped my front right tooth. The tooth suffered damage on the corner innermost to the front left tooth in approximately 1/8 of an inch. I need to get this repaired but finances are an issue and I don’t want to spend a lot of money on porcelain veneers but I also want to repair the tooth properly. What is the best solution for my chipped right tooth?
– Steven from Louisiana

Steven,
A small chip like this doesn’t require a porcelain veneer. Instead, the best procedure would be a simple direct bonding repair.
Be sure to do your homework and get the best dentist for this procedure. You don’t need to be “upgraded” to porcelain veneers and at the same time, you want a dentist who has the artistic skills to effectively do a beautiful job with direct bonding.

This blog brought to you by Baton Rouge family dentist, Dr. Ryan P. Perry.

I Have Pain with White Fillings

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A couple of weeks ago, I decided to get tooth whitening and my front composite fillings replaced. I thought everything was fine because I didn’t have any pain or sensitivity to cold or hot. But then I noticed one of my front composite fillings started giving me pain in the corner when I was biting food.
I got this filling removed and replaced but I still have pain. Do I need to see a dentist again? What is going on?
– John from Louisiana

Jeremy,
Without a dentist seeing you in person, it’s hard to determine why your tooth is sensitive. However, it’s probably nothing to be concerned about.
When a patient gets white fillings, sometimes they will experience some sensitivities or slight pain. This may be because there was some irritation in the bonding process. Or, it might be that when the final polishing was done on the filling, it irritated the enamel of the tooth. A sensitivity to touch, especially minimal, is usually nothing. In fact, you generally see the pain diminish over time.

This blog brought to you by Baton Rouge family dentist, Dr. Ryan P. Perry.